{"id":5868,"date":"2025-02-16T15:12:29","date_gmt":"2025-02-16T14:12:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forum.ncdalliance.org\/?p=5868"},"modified":"2025-02-19T16:19:13","modified_gmt":"2025-02-19T15:19:13","slug":"day-3-if-you-want-to-run-fast-run-alone-if-you-want-to-run-far-run-together","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forum.ncdalliance.org\/fr\/2025-02-16\/day-3-if-you-want-to-run-fast-run-alone-if-you-want-to-run-far-run-together\/","title":{"rendered":"Day 3: If you want to run fast, run alone; if you want to run far, run together"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Community-building has always been central to these Global Forums, and this was playing out both during and between the formal sessions of the Forum: new friendships, collaborations and alliances have formed. We are going home with renewed vigour, renewed by our conversations and buoyed by the shared enthusiasm and positivity of our colleagues and peers. As Chikhulupiliro Stanley Ng\u2019ombe, a Global Advisory Committee member of Our Views, Our Voices put it: \u2018We are the flame: once ignited it will spearhead, promote and propel the action we have been talking about.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Grateful thanks to departed advocates<\/h4>

Dr Joseph Kibachio paid heartfelt tribute to two remarkable NCD advocates, whom our community lost last year. Dr Vicki Pinkney-Atkinson<\/strong> dedicated much of her life to equitable access, latterly as the director of the South African NCD Alliance, harnessing alliances for the greater good. Charity Muturi<\/strong> was an inspirational force in the Kenya NCD Alliance and in East Africa. Just last month, attempted suicide was decriminalised by the High Court in Kenya, something for which Charity had been campaigning for many years.<\/p>

Both Vicki and Charity are greatly missed by their friends and colleagues, and by all of us in the wider NCD community.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\tCollaboration, momentum, optimism and courage: working as a community on NCDs<\/h2>\n

The day\u2019s opening plenary epitomised just how far we have come since the first UNHLM in 2011 in centring the voices of people with lived experience on platforms and in decision-making. \u2018Nothing about us without us\u2019\u2026 but there is a long way still to go.<\/p>\n

The impact of the unprecedented social movement on HIV\/AIDS provides valuable lessons for the NCD community. Florence Riako Anam<\/strong> (Global Network of People living with HIV) described how people living with HIV came together to end AIDS deaths and smash stigma. But getting into rooms where decisions are made requires support and funding.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\u2018Integrating HIV and NCDs has become real. This is an opportunity to collaborate more, within the structures that you have and we have\u2019\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFlorence Riako Anam<\/cite>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTweeter<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/blockquote>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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As Edith Mukantwari<\/strong> (Africa Diabetes Alliance) and other advocates come forward, more are emboldened to join them, reaching broader communities. Edith stressed the need for advocates to work together across different issues: \u2018Building power vertically isn\u2019t helping anybody; we need to build power horizontally, with one another.\u2019<\/p>\n

Dr Ravi Ram<\/strong> (WHO Civil Society Commission) welcomed WHO\u2019s Resolution on Social Participation, adopted by governments in May last year: \u2018It specifically says that one-off consultations are not social participation; let\u2019s aim higher! \u2026 This sets a new norm.\u2019 He also dismissed the lie that NCDs are merely \u2018lifestyle\u2019 diseases: our choices are shaped and constrained by policies set by government.<\/p>\n

Radhika Shrivastav<\/strong> (HRIDAY) talked about the advocacy in India that continually pushes government and the health system to ensure meaningful involvement. Civil society organisations as the link between people living with NCDs and the government: \u2018Meaningful engagement is not the destination, but an ongoing process\u2019 \u2013 Radhika Shrivasta<\/p>\n

Dr Joseph Kibachio<\/strong> (Medical Advisor for NCDs and Mental Health, WHO) emphasised the difference between Geneva (where ministers of health attend the World Health Assembly) and New York (where the UNHLM will be held, and which is a whole-of-government gathering). And although NCDs are unique in having had four dedicated HLMs, this has not yet, unfortunately, been accompanied by a movement akin to that on HIV.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Elsewhere at the Forum<\/h4>

I suspect that we all wished that we could be several places at once today, as there was so much to do! During breaks, the Community Stage featured discussions on experiences from Rwanda and South Africa, on community-led monitoring and on integrated NCD responses.<\/p>

Nine satellite sessions included a focus on health systems, on diabetes and NCD financing in Africa, on oral and kidney health, on gender-responsive policies, on legislative advocacy, and on the double burden of malnutrition and NCDs.<\/p>

The Kigali Youth Statement<\/a> was also launched today, which calls for leveraging investment, enforcing policies that prioritise youth, advancing accountability and institutionalising meaningful youth participation, and driving change through collaboration and community engagement.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\tBe louder, push harder and demand more!<\/h2>\n

Liesl Zuhlke<\/strong>, NCD Alliance Board of Directors, opened the final plenary, looking forward to the coming months, to the commitments we can make and action that we can take.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\u2018NCDs are not just health crises: they threaten our collective future, deepen inequalities and hinder sustainable development\u2019\n\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLiesl Zuhlke<\/cite>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTweeter<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/blockquote>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The panellists all made clear that now is the time to act, the time to lead and the time to speak with one voice. As Professor Kaushik Ramaiya<\/strong> (Tanzania NCD Alliance) noted, we cannot fight for our own resources: we need to work together, to integrate services, to be efficient and cost-effective, and to deliver what will work for the majority.<\/p>\n

Farah Feteha<\/strong> (Egyptian Society for Adolescent Medicine) introduced all delegates to the Kigali Youth Statement<\/a> and called for strong youth representation at the UNHLM, so that more young people can be inspired. \u2018We are the future of the future, and we need you to hear from us about what we actually need, not what you think that we need!\u2019 Rory Nefdt<\/strong> (UNICEF) congratulated Farah and all the young people present for their vital contributions to the Forum. He also noted that the monitoring frameworks for NCDs look only at the age group aged 30\u201370, so better data is needed right across the life course.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\u2018Our children and youth are our most important asset: they are not only the future of society but are current stakeholders in health policy\u2019\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tRory Nedft<\/cite>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTweeter<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/blockquote>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Beatriz Champagne<\/strong> (CLAS) encouraged everyone to mobilise NCD champions. She called for all of us to know and understand the NCD community\u2019s priorities ahead of the HLM, and for us all to hold onto our values and to be courageous in troubled times. James Reid <\/strong>(Helmsley Charitable Trust) felt that the Forum has confirmed Helmsley\u2019s ambitions but challenges it to go further and deeper, supporting government-led solutions.<\/p>

A particularly powerful voice was that of Chikhulupiliro Stanley Ng\u2019ombe<\/strong> (Our Views, Our Voices<\/a>), who called for the rallying of an army of people with lived experience, using the initiatives, tools and technologies at our disposal as ammunition. He also cautioned that if people living with NCDs are not fully represented at the UNHLM, \u2018then whose meeting is it?<\/em>\u2019<\/p>

The Forum was closed by Professor Joseph Mucumbitsi <\/strong>(Rwanda NCD Alliance), who thanked all the partners and sponsors and encouraged everyone to go home and take forward what we have discussed.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\u2018I hope we will all will roll up our sleeves and put what we have learned into action: a ripple effect extending regionally and globally\u2019\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJoseph Mucumbitsi<\/cite>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTweeter<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/blockquote>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Professor Monika Arora<\/strong> (NCD Alliance) highlighted the NCD Alliance\u2019s Call to Lead<\/a> as a way to ensure coordinated messaging to governments and to catalyse coordinated action ahead of the UNHLM, just 220 days away: \u2018I am deeply inspired, energised and hopeful \u2013 not because the target is small, but because the determination and commitment is both enormous and palpable.\u2019<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\u2018Leave not just with ideas, but with a mission. Let\u2019s be louder, push harder and demand more. We are not just participants in the fight against NCDs: we are leaders\u2019\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMonika Arora<\/cite>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTweeter<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/blockquote>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The final deep dives<\/h2>

Mobilise sustainable financing<\/em><\/h4>